가락

Korean

Etymology

First attested in the Myobeomnyeonhwagyeong eonhae (妙法蓮華經諺解 / 묘법연화경언해), 1463, as Middle Korean 가락 (Yale: kàlàk).

This word is part of a family of related terms with a core meaning of "split". The ancestral root form appears to have been *가ᄃᆞ *kato- or similar, with some forms undergoing intervocalic lenition and some not. Related forms include 갈래 (gallae, “strand, fork, division”), 가달 (gadal, “something split from each other”), 가닥 (gadak, “strand, long thin object”), and 가르다 (gareuda, “to split, to sort out”).

Pronunciation

• (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA^(key): [ka̠ɾa̠k̚]

  • (file)

• Phonetic hangul: [가락]

Romanizations
Revised Romanization?	garak
Revised Romanization (translit.)?	galag
McCune–Reischauer?	karak
Yale Romanization?	kalak

Noun

가락 • (garak)

1. spindle; distaff
2. strand
3. melody

Counter

가락 • (garak)

1. counter for any long, thin object
2. counter for songs

Derived terms

• 머리카락 (meorikarak, “hair (strands)”)
• 손가락 (son'garak, “finger”)
• 발가락 (balgarak, “toe”)
• 젓가락 (箸가락, jeotgarak, “chopsticks”)
• 숟가락 (sutgarak, “spoon”)